| 词组 | paraphernalia |
| 释义 | paraphernalia Paraphernalia is a plural noun from medieval Latin for which there is no operative singular in English. The grammarian H. Poutsma in 1904 found its use with a singular verb (attested since 1788 in the OED) objectionable; three quarters of a century later the grammarian Randolph Quirk (Style and Communication in the English Language, 1982) expressed doubts that a native speaker of English, in spite of the insistence of dictionaries, would use it as a plural count noun. The evidence at this dictionary office falls somewhere between the two opinions. We know from evidence that paraphernalia is used with both singular and plural verbs: • ... the paraphernalia of Christianity is prophylactic against the taint —George Stade, N. Y. Times Book Rev., 14 Jan. 1973 • The paraphernalia of line fishing are found — Edward P. Lanning, Peru Before the Incas, 1967 Use with a plural verb does not in itself prove that a noun is a plural count noun, because many collective nouns, even though singular in form, can be used with plural verbs. But the next example seems to show a bona fide plural count noun: • ... all those paraphernalia of women's lives — Judith Chernaik, Saturday Rev., 6 Jan. 1973 Somewhat more often, however, the word seems to be perceived as a mass noun: • ... every bit of transistorized paraphernalia gleams —Arlene Croce, in The Film, 1968 • It's stuffed with every kind of oldfangled paraphernalia —Playboy, February 1981 Here we have notional agreement at work. Some feel paraphernalia is a plural count noun; some feel it is a singular mass noun. We cannot fault either use. See Latin plurals for other plurals used as singulars. |
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